“I have seen the dark universe yawning where the black planets roll without aim, where they roll in their horror unheeded, without knowledge, or lustre, or name.” (H.P. Lovecraft)
Intensely inspired by the recently released “Disharmonium – Nahab“, Italian video artist Gabriele Panci has teamed up with BLUT AUS NORD to create a visual interpretation of ‘Nameless Rites‘. Check the video below:
Gabriele comments on his inspiration for the clip:
“While I was listening to the album, I first started to wonder and then began to imagine what was hidden behind the fog we can see on the artwork. In the video, the viewer will find an explication of what I found and saw when I finally managed to cross the wall of mist…“
Gabriele was also responsible for the clip which accompanied the track ‘Tales Of The Old Dreamer‘ from “Undreamable Abysses“, the first installment of BAN‘s “Disharmonium” series. Watch here!
“Disharmonium – Nahab” is available in various formats via our EU, US and Bandcamp shops.
Originating in 1994 from the ashes of VLAD (who released two demos), BLUT AUS NORD are undisputable French Black Metal pioneers, always managing to progress and move forward, evolving in perpetual mutation, developing their own vision of Black Metal.
Choosing, from the start, the total opposite path of regressive bands (who copy what others have done ten years earlier and ten times better), BLUT AUS NORD eschews all the inherent clichés belonging to the genre. BLUT AUS NORD‘s Black Metal approach is a fist in the face of mainstream mediocrity, becoming more macabre and sinister through a blend of innovative musical research, subliminal mental manipulation, and an incredible haunted, nightmarish feeling based on disharmony.
BLUT AUS NORD are creators of a hallucinogenic universe, erasing all preconceived ideas of Black Metal – and extreme music in general. They redefine the rules…
IMPURE WILHELMINA are no strangers to reinvention. For the past 25 years, the Geneva quartet have rolled hardcore riffs, velveteen cleans, atmospheric sludge and gloomy melodies into post-metal that’s as sharp and versatile as a Swiss Army Knife.
Now, Impure Wilhelmina are breathing new life into several time-worn classics. ‘Dead Decades’ flips the smoky, after-dark romance of “La Javanaise” into a lovestruck indie rock triumph, while also paying a faithfully mind-bending tribute to King Crimson.
‘Dead Decades’ comes out today, October 6. Their new EP also includes a cover of The Cure, plus two unreleased songs from the recording sessions for Impure Wilhelmina’s latest album ‘Antidote’.
“We’d been wanting to record some covers for a long time,” says Impure Wilhelmina. “The opportunity came in 2022 after the forced cancellation of a European tour at the end of the pandemic. We chose three songs that we all love, released during three different decades – 60s, 70s and 80s – and all three are very far removed from our usual sound. Two previously unreleased tracks from the ‘Antidote’ album sessions complete the EP. The record has a very strong nostalgic vibe, and we’re particularly proud of the result. Enjoy our Dead Decades!”
Cover artwork: Mehdi Benkler (photography) / Giganto.ch
Rome based sludge/post-metal unit OTUS have unveiled the official video of “Apnea”. The song is featured on the band’s latest album “Torch”, out now via Time To Kill Records.
“In many cults or disciplines of spiritual realization, the process of elevation/enlightenment also involves breathing. The video, shot and edited by the photographer and videomaker Serena Dattilo, is a cynical metaphor on the control of the latter, up to its total deprivation towards the search for a way of personal enlightenment that does not follow more conventional paths. A flame without oxygen is bound to end: what remains is an extinguished torch, but its prayer still manages to rise upwards through the smoke”.
“Torch” is a concept album focusing on “The Fourth Way” introduced by philosopher/mystic Georges Gurdjieff. The Fourth Way is a system of elevation and development of the man that differs from the other three ways identified by the mystic: Way of the Fakir, Way of the Monk and Way of the Yogi. These three paths based respectively on a material, emotional and intellectual approach are transcended, balanced and regenerated in a fourth path, where it will be the Will to illuminate the right personal orbit. The “Torch” is therefore an allegory on illumination through a work on our darkest and deepest self, where its fire will constitute the alchemical catalyst capable of deconstructing, purifying and then coagulating our new synthesis.
Musically, OTUS represents strong melodies and a multi-layered sound. With influences drawn from bands like Isis, Om, Cult Of Luna and Sunn O))), their music is bridging the gap between brutality and mysticism.
The band enriches its sound playing ethnic instruments, building its own synthesizers, chanting mantras and taking particular care of its visual and symbolic identity, from show posters to onstage visual projections. The result of this research moves the band’s approach on mainly long and complex compositions, that evolve smoothly between aggressive and relaxed moments, atmospheric and violent resolutions, all in the service of the concept among occult and science that OTUS offer through its lyrics and visual art. This musical project was inspired in fact, also by the desire to deal with concepts related mainly to Eastern philosophies, which intersect with the more recent discoveries of modern physics; authors such as Fritjof Capra and Jiddu Krishnamurti are important sources of inspiration.
Cult heavy metal icons CIRITH UNGOL today unveil their latest single, “Looking Glass.” The monolithic new track comes by way of the band’s impending sixth full-length, Dark Parade, set for release on October 20th via Metal Blade Records.
Few bands in the history of the heavy metal underground have a story as remarkable, improbable, or uplifting as that of CIRITH UNGOL. Formed in Ventura, California in the early 1970s, CIRITH UNGOL created a sound the world had never experienced before. Rather than passively channeling their influences, the band was driven to forge an altogether heavier, darker, more apocalyptic sound. It was obscure and arcane, mysterious and eccentric, epic and expansive, but most of all, unfailingly, bone-crushingly heavy, dark, and doom-filled.
Wasting no time to ride their molten wave they started with their 2020 studio comeback Forever Black, CIRITH UNGOL started writing songs for Dark Parade as soon as Forever Black was released. Then, like everyone else, CIRITH UNGOL were hamstrung by the global pandemic, struggling through illness, seclusion, grief, and depression in their quest to create dark, vibrant art. And like the greatest warriors, they persevered, working on one song at a time – distractions be damned. The first track composed was the crushing “Relentless,” which reinforced their confidence and clarity of vision. The rest of the album came naturally, fueled by personal misery and the tragedy of worldwide collapse.
With all eight demos finished – which are included on the expanded edition of the album – CIRITH UNGOL started recording Dark Parade in October 2022. The end result is an unrelenting triumph of pessimism and pain; a head-over-heels, Lovecraftian tumble into an abyss of horror and despair and arguably the most vitriolic expedition CIRITH UNGOL has undertaken to date. Despite the fantasy-inspired art on the band’s albums and their Tolkien-derived name – the band stopped exploring sword and sorcery-related themes in the mid-’80s. Most of the subjects they’ve addressed since then have been far more real and frightening than any ravenous make-believe creatures fighting sword-wielding warriors.
Up-tempo but still moody, latest single “Looking Glass” begins with a shattering mirror and gains steam with trenchant riffs that slither between a multitude of muted chugs. During the understated midsection, the tone turns dusky as the tune reaches its pinnacle, with lengthy, blues-based leads. Rob Garven’s drums match the shifting mood beat for beat. “It has the quintessential UNGOL slowed down middle section, like ‘Join The Legion’ [from 1991’s Paradise Lost] and ‘War Eternal’ [from 1986’s One Foot In Hell],” says Garven. “I spent quite a lot of time getting the drum fill at the beginning of the solo just perfect.”
“Looking Glass” marks the beginning of a conceptual four-song sequence that introduces listeners to “The Dark Parade,” a visceral and poignant multi-song presentation that leaves little room for happy endings. “Is it a nightmare tale of self-reflection or just another journey through the cracks in our reality and the curse of broken dreams?” asks vocalist Tim Baker, shedding a little light on the “darkness” within. “It’s not quite what Lewis Carroll [author of Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, Through The Looking-Glass etc.] had in mind, but an even more bleak and deadly vision. Alice found that her visions were the complete opposite of her dreams, but here they are one and the same. Will waking dispel the nightmares, or are our waking hours just the extension of them? Once we smash the mirror, there is no turning back.“
CIRITH UNGOL will play a special record release show on October 20th at The Roxy in West Hollywood, marking the band’s first Los Angeles live appearance in thirty-five years. The performance will commemorate The Roxy’s 50th anniversary and find the band playing Dark Parade in its entirety followed by a full set of classic material. Additionally, the set will be filmed and recorded for a future live release.
CIRITH UNGOL Live: 10/20/2023 The Roxy – West Hollywood, CA * Record Release Show [Tickets]
CIRITH UNGOL: Tim Baker – vocals Jimmy Barraza – guitar Greg Lindstrom – guitar Rob Garven – drums Jarvis Leatherby – bass
German death/thrash metal masters, BURDEN OF GRIEF, have announced the release of their eighth studio album, titled “Destination Dystopia”. Available as CD, Ltd. Vinyl LP and Digital formats on November 24, 2023 through Massacre Records, the album pre-sale is now available at: https://lnk.to/destinationdystopia
It’s their first offering in more than five long years. Five years, in which so much has happened in the world that BURDEN OF GRIEF were forced to refer to it lyrically and musically. Reinforced by the two new members Dominik Hellmuth (guitars) and Manuel Lüke (drums), they now present the strongest, heaviest and most varied album in the almost 30-year band history.
Give ear, as BURDEN OF GRIEF have just unleashed a music video for their first single, the fierce “Fevered Dreams”! The clip is now streaming at:
“This is the very first song we wrote for the new album and it’s also the first song written by our new guitarist Dome.“The band comments.“The last time that a BURDEN OF GRIEF song wasn’t written by our band founder Philipp or by our longtime guitarist Joe, who unfortunately left the band in 2021 after 15 years, was in 2003. Therefore “Fevered Dreams” has actually a special status for us. Nevertheless, it fits in perfectly with our previous works.“
On “Destination Dystopia”, BURDEN OF GRIEF accomplished to focus on their years of experience, to combine their strengths and to put them into 10 riff monsters that are bursting with energy, great melodies and pure heaviness. First and foremost, you’ll get the thrash and melodic death treatment, but you’ll also find a plethora of elements that go way beyond what these musical drawers are all about. Expect killer grooves, classic twin-guitar solos as well as the return of the old-school Hammond organ. Kristian “Kohle” Kohlmannslehner and his assistant Daniel Claar took care of the drum recordings, mixing and mastering of the album at the Kohlekeller Studios (Hämatom, Powerwolf, Aborted, etc.), and they made sure that “Destination Dystopia” is the tightest and heaviest album BURDEN OF GRIEF has ever released!
“Destination Dystopia” track listing:
World Under Attack
A Daydream Of Sorrow
Exposed To The Dark
Downfall
Fevered Dreams
The Devil’s Bride
Mass Murder Society
Destination Dystopia
Fall Into Oblivion
My Suicide
BURDEN OF GRIEF Live: 28.10.2023 DE Paderborn – Kulturwerkstatt 03.11.2023 DE Oberhausen – Helvete 04.11.2023 DE Osterode – Jugendgästehaus (United Forces Festival) 24.11.2023 DE Kassel – Goldgrube 25.11.2023 DE Verne – Rockscheune
BURDEN OF GRIEF is: Mike Huhmann – Vocals Philipp Hanfland – Guitars Dominik Hellmuth – Guitars Florian Bauer – Bass Manuel Lüke – Drums
Austin, Texas based melodic death metal band-to-watch HINAYANA recently announced the release of their unmissable upcoming sophomore full-length album, Shatter And Fall, out November 10, 2023 via Napalm Records. Setting them apart from contemporaries like Insomnium, Amorphis and Swallow the Sun, Shatter And Fall blends modern, accessible elements with equal parts melody and menace, emerging as a fresh entry in this year’s most head-turning metal offerings.
Today, following their recent debut of massive first single “Reverse The Code“, HINAYANA reveals the somber yet spine-tingling second single “Triptych Visions”. The track features some of Shatter And Fall’s most melancholic and introspective moments, with a grooving introduction, unforgettable chorus and an exemplary solo.
Frontman Casey Hurd says about “Triptych Visions”: “Be it addiction or simply yearning for another life, we can often get lost in our mind’s eye. ‘Triptych Visions’ is about one’s own inability to break loose from such a vicious cycle of self-destruction and escapism, regardless of the pain it always ends in. The track showcases an intense and emotional facet of HINAYANA’s new sonic direction.”
In 2018, HINAYANA first ensnared the masses with their self-released debut, Order Divine, and later defied the pandemic with their subsequent 2020 release, the Death Of The Cosmic EP. Produced by frontman Casey Hurd and Kevin Butler with mastering by Dan Swanö at Unisound, upcoming Shatter And Fall serves as a darker, more solemn work in comparison to their previous releases, yet superior without question in songwriting, technicality and cohesiveness. Shatter And Fall also features guest contributions from melodic death metal purveyors and labelmates Tuomas Saukkonen of WOLFHEART and Vincent Jackson Jones of AETHER REALM.
Frontman Casey Hurd says about the album: “Shatter And Fall is about Karma, one’s own fate, consequences, grief about our own actions, depression, loss of faith, yin and yang, light and dark, and our own unchanging nature as humans. It’s darker, heavier, and more diverse than our previous releases. We’re evolving and expanding on our sound to include more catchy and anthemic elements in addition to the darker, heavier material. This new album is a significant milestone for HINAYANA.”
Introductory track “Slowly Light Collides” opens the heavy gates of Shatter And Fall without hesitation, setting the stage for its impending intensity with a potent mixture of headbang-inducing heaviness and hair-raising melodies and harmonies. Second track “Mind Is A Shadow”, featuring guest vocals from Vincent Jackson Jones of fellow American melodic death metal frontrunners AETHER REALM, hits equally hard with a gripping, chunky verse riff and searing chorus. Frontman Casey Hurd’s deep growls juxtapose effortlessly with Jones’s skyscraper screams before a seizing solo from Erik Shtaygrud marks the track’s apex. Anthems like “How Many Dreams”, “The Answer” and enthralling groove machine “Reverse The Code” – the latter boasting one of the album’s most flourishing closer passages – march further into the icy depths, proving Shatter And Fall as a multifaceted melodeath record.
Powerful “Spirit And Matter” and somber yet essential, spine-tingling “Triptych Visions” feature some of the album’s most melancholic and introspective moments, traversing expansive peaks and valleys of deep metallic intensity and some of the album’s most delicate, acoustic-driven moments. The implementation of diverse styles, showcased by the varied instrumentation and intensity of songs like touching interlude “From Our Darkest Moments”, versus massive, crushing sonic saga “Lost To Flame”, poise the band for undeniable recognition. All-consuming single “A Tide Unturning”, featuring guest vocal contributions from Tuomas Saukkonen of Finnish melodic death icons WOLFHEART, shines as the most desolate summit of Shatter And Fall, serving as one of the most brutalizing yet pensive ballads of 2023. The album ends on the grimmest note of all with blackened closer “Taken”, a re-recorded, renewed look back at a track originally released on the band’s 2014 demo Endless – marking an apt finish to a contemplative, emotional album tangling with themes of fate, grief and inevitable consequence.
Shatter And Fall track listing: 1. Slowly Light Collides 2. Mind Is A Shadow (feat. Vincent Jackson Jones) 3. How Many Dreams 4. Spirit And Matter 5. From Our Darkest Moments 6. Reverse The Code 7. Lost To Flame 8. The Answer 9. Triptych Visions 10. A Tide Unturning (feat. Tuomas Saukkonen) 11. Taken
In other news, HINAYANA will join headliners WOLFHEART and fellow support act BEFORE THE DAWN on a tour of Europe and the UK this fall! The tour will take place all throughout November and will visit London, Paris, Budapest, Berlin and many more major cities! Don’t miss this exciting lineup – see below for all dates.
WOLFHEART w/ HINAYANA and BEFORE THE DAWN | Europe/UK 2023: *without Hinayana 03.11.23 CH – Aarau / KiFF* 04.11.23 BE – Louvain La Neuve / Mass Deathtruction Festival* 05.11.23 GB – London / The Dome* 06.11.23 NL – Rotterdam / Baroeg 07.11.23 FR – Paris / Backstage By The Mill 08.11.23 DE – Siegburg / Kubana 09.11.23 DE – Trier / Mergener Hof 10.11.23 NL – Helmond / Cacaofabriek 11.11.23 DE – Essen / Turock 12.11.23 AT – Innsbruck / PMK 14.11.23 DE – Munich / Backstage Halle 15.11.23 HU – Budapest / Barba Negra 16.11.23 AT – Vienna / Szene 17.11.23 DE – Leipzig / Hellraiser 18.11.23 DE – Weissenhäuser Strand / Metal Hammer Paradise 19.11.23 DE – Berlin / ORWO Haus 20.11.23 CZ – Prague / Futurum Music Bar 21.11.23 PL – Warsaw / Hydrozagadka 22.11.23 PL – Kraków / Kamienna12 23.11.23 DE – Dresden / Chemiefabrik 24.11.23 DE – Mannheim / MS Connexion Complex 25.11.23 DE – Hannover / Musikzentrum 26.11.23 NL – Maasstricht / Muziekgieterij
HINAYANA is: Casey Hurd – Guitar/Vocals Daniel Vieira – Drums Erik Shtaygrud – Guitar Michael Anstice – Keyboard Matt Bius – Bass
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s ASA unveil the long-overdue release of "Collective Failure" + first music video for title-track! Check it out and stay tuned for more news! Click image to watch the video
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
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Visionary artist KIMMO KUUSNIEMI's ANCIENT STREAMING ASSEMBLY (ASA) have released “Aurora Nuclearis”, a powerful 12-minute audiovisual experience, dedicated to the Late Keyboardist Esa Kotilainen. - Click image to watch the video
Click image to watch the video
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